


Turning

by Gemini (GeminiHalo)



Category: Hereditary (2018)
Genre: Gen, Minor Character Death, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-05
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2021-03-02 20:00:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,678
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24022477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GeminiHalo/pseuds/Gemini
Summary: Charlie slowly loses herself to Paimon.
Kudos: 16





	Turning

Charlie was surrounded and she wasn't sure what to make of this. Her mom, dad, and brother were gone but she was here now. She really wasn't Charlie but then again she was and there was turmoil in her mind at that thought. The chanting of the men and women surrounded the room and seemed to fade away as she stared at the bodies. She looked up at the head-- _her head_ \-- and it wasn't as upsetting as she thought it should be. 

Charlie--no that wasn't her name anymore and she was no longer a girl--she looked down at her hand, darker, longer fingers, nothing like her own, they belonged to her brother but were now her hands. _His hands_. Charlie's brother wasn't there anymore and she recalled the last memory she had of him running frantically with her in his arms. Now those arms belonged to her and her name was Paimon. She remembered her grandmother telling her that name, that it was her true name and she was meant for great things. Charlie felt the tears before she realized she was crying as she squeezed her trembling hand into a fist.

"King Paimon?" One of the worshippers near her voiced with concern.

"Quiet," Charlie replied softly barely above a whisper. 

"King Pai-?"

"Silence!" Charlie's voice rang deep, powerful and the person who'd addressed her fell to their knees along with the other's. 

It was Peter's voice, body, everything he was and now it was Charlie's. Charlie didn't want _this_ , she'd never asked for _this_ , could never dream that it would end like _this_. She loved Peter, he'd protected her until...until he'd grown distant...interested in girls and drugs. But she knew he'd never hurt her on purpose that he loved her. 

Charlie… no _King Paimon_ turned and looked down at the kneeling bodies. He frowned at the memory of them smiling at her during the funeral. They'd been waiting, watching, and planning long before that point. She feels anger, sadness, betrayal in her heart when she looks at her grandma's picture. She had damned her family, promised them to his servitude, and returned him to a proper body. Charlie loved her but she glared at the picture all the same. The crack that appeared on the frame didn't startle her as it might have under different circumstances. 

He was aware of _their_ intentions, they'd sacrificed two generations to return him. They wanted his knowledge, his blessings, his familiars but Charlie didn't want to give them that. She could care less about these people and now standing surrounded by them groveling she felt nothing for them. Her life hadn't been perfect and she'd hated her mom at times but they hadn’t deserved this. She didn't want to be their king but she _was._ A loyal servant to the Devil, knowledgeable in many things, and worthy of worship. _HE_ was Paimon and he could feel the knowledge returning to him. Memories from past lives opened to him and still, he felt pain. He moved his hand down to his side and focused his eyes on his former body before turning away. 

"Who among you is the leader?" He asked, voice powerful and more certain.

"There is no leader among up, we are your servants King Paimon," it was one of the men he'd seen smiling at the funeral. 

"Which of you will speak to me directly?" 

There was silence and then a woman stood slowly. "I will," she said with her head lowered in a respectful bow. She seemed familiar but Paimon couldn't recall from where.

"Lift your gaze," Paimon commanded with ease that Charlie had never known. 

When the woman did Paimon realized where he'd seen her. Where Peter had seen her and Paimon knew the terror and pain that Peter had suffered. He was aware that in order to be here now everything needed to happen as it did but it still affected him. There was love in his heart for this mortal family... _for her family_...and they'd torn it asunder. 

Paimon's hand moved around her throat as anger flooded him. They wanted his blessing, his familiars and their sacrifice had been his own brother whom he - _Charlie_ \- loved. His dog that had done nothing but exist was decapitated in the field and this was supposed to please him? It should have, he was aware of that as the woman's eyes widened in fear as he tightened his grip. He should be more than happy to have them here and willing to do as he commanded. Except he wasn't because Charlie was who he was and even with his true self-awakening he loathed these people at this moment. 

The woman didn't struggle as his grip cut her ability to breathe. There was an audible snap and she was gone. His fingers nearly touched before he let go and watched her body drop to the floor in a lifeless heap. The others had not moved and he could hear them chanting. Old tongue, the language of his devoted, and he understood them clearly. They had promised their souls to him and yet all he wanted was for them to die.

Charlie was never squeamish about death, and yet Peter's death made her sick. 

He could feel them now, the bodies of the dead, like tethers around him controlled without conscious effort. He watched as the woman's lifeless body contorted itself until it kneeled down in front of him as it had before with her head now hanging limply. It upset him on some level but on another greater level, it _pleased_ him. They had not run, hadn't even batted an eye, they had just accepted his judgment.

_Loyalty_

Paimon would take her sacrifice as payment for their selfishness. 

He clicked his tongue once feeling again the difference of his tongue and mouth. It felt different but natural even when there was nothing natural about this. He would become accustomed to this body, learn of this new world, and do what was meant of him. He silently stepped forward, ignoring their inquiring eyes as he stood in front of the opening to the outside. 

"Stay." It was his only command as Paimon descended from the treehouse. He was sure they’d obey as he climbed down the ladder. When his feet met the grass and he turned he noticed them. His many followers standing along the edges of the property. Their naked bodies and smiling faces turned to him before they too kneeled for him. Paimon looked over at the family's dog body and smiled despite himself. 

They would do for now.

He would grant them their request in time but for now, he needed to be alone. King Paimon walked towards the house that was his home for years and opened the door. He stood still as it creaked completely open and slowly stepped inside. Everything felt beneath him now that he was taller, the house itself was no longer what it once was. Where there had once been order, disrepair took its place. He could sense the charred body of Charlie's father laid in the living room outside his reach. 

King Paimon felt nothing for this man and yet Charlie mourned. He pushed the thought aside as he slowly stepped towards the bathroom. He wanted to see his new body and all that they’d worked so hard to give him. He was aware of what he looked like from memories but that wasn’t enough. He flipped the switch in the restroom and kept his gaze transfixed on the mirror as he stepped in front of it. Peter had been broken and his mind had been warped as guilt ate away at his soul. Paimon had no guilt, no remorse and in his reflection, he saw that he was attractive. 

Paimon lifted his hands and slowly peeled away the wrapping over his nose. He let it fall in the sink and stared into his eyes. He was injured...he didn't need to be and he no longer was, but he was unclean. This body would do well for him - Charlie's brother, his tears, his guilt, his pain, it would work for Paimon. He slid his jacket down and pulled off his bloodied shirt knocking his crown off. He pushed his shoes off and unbuckled his jeans. It all fell away and soon he stood naked with his reflection hiding nothing. It was new, different, then again it was the same as before. He felt a mixture of shame and elation as he ran his hand down his waist to his hips. Seeing _her_ brother like this felt wrong but that statement meant nothing anymore. He was seeing _himself_ nothing more or less. He could hear his followers chanting louder in the surroundings as he walked to the shower.

King Paimon turned on the water and stepped into the shower letting the cold seep through his skin. A shiver ran down his spine as he felt what it meant to be _alive_ again. He pushed his fingers through his hair, tilted his head back, and let the water run down his face. He moved his hand down over his face and felt the blood wash away. He took a deep breath through his nose and smiled. It was invigorating to feel this alive again, to have a body that fit him well.

King Paimon shut off the water and stepped out of the shower. He was born again, washed free of any feelings of remorse and regret. He had been Charlie, now he was a King and he had a congregation to command.

He didn't glance at the mirror again as he stepped out of the bathroom bare. He smiled when he saw the headless body of the girl and her mother kneeled at the door. He nodded approvingly as they draped fine linen over his shoulder and placed his crown back upon his head. Their prayers and whispers of complete devotion pleased him to no end. 

King Paimon was truly free to rule now. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading.


End file.
